Social Media –> 5 Examples of “That’s Not How It Works Anymore”

I have to say, I love the new esurance commercials against Geico. While I don’t agree with brands pitting themselves against each other, I do like the message the commercials send that, frankly, things don’t work the way that they used to work. Now, anytime I see something completely ridiculous on social media, I say to myself, “That’s not how it works”. For those of you living under a rock, here’s an example of what I’m talking about:

The hilarious part of these commercials is that they are so real. There really are people out there that don’t understand social media, or it’s uses. So, in honor of this lovely esurance campaign, here’s a list of things that I’ve come across lately where I’ve said to myself, “That’s not how it works”.

• A private DM on Twitter that literally said, “Hi Marji, thanks for the follow! Please can you retweet one of our messages.” That’s it. Nothing else.

  • Anyone who follows my blog knows that I am absolutely against automated DMs on Twitter, but this takes it to another level. If you want someone to RT you, give them a reason to. Provide valuable advice they’d want to share with their followers, or give them another incentive. Don’t just tell them to.

  • The Backstreet Boys asking fans to follow and RT and they promise to follow them back. (Confession: Since Millenium by The Backstreet Boys was my first CD, I definitely fell victim to this one, and they DID NOT follow me back as promised.)

    • The days of using cheap tricks like this to gain followers are over. Plus- you’re THE BACKSTREET BOYS- do you really need to sink to this level to gain followers?! It’s the same with asking for a RT– give fans an incentive to follow you by providing valuable information or behind-the-scenes extras.

    • Hosting contests that you can only enter via one social media network.

      • If you want people to participate on social media, you have to make it excruciatingly EASY for them to participate. Allowing them only to enter a contest on FB, or only through Twitter, is not making it easy for them. Suck it up, and pay the extra bucks or put in the extra work, to make it as easy as possible for ALL of your social community to enter your contests.

      • A cookie-cutter customer service response that is not tailored AT ALL to what my request was.

        • Fans are on social media to have a more intimate conversation with your brand– not to get the exact same response they would get if they filled out your contact form on your website. Reference their specific issue in your response. It takes little time, and will make a world of difference in developing a closer relationship with your fans.

        • A 9-5 social presence.

          • I actually did not know this was even an option until I started working the corporate world, and saw all of these other corporations with a disclosure on all of their social networks that they are only available 9-5 M-F. WTF?! Boy, did I miss the ideal job, then. I find it incredibly hard to believe that anyone can have an effective social media presence and turn off on weeknights and weekends. I touched on this in my last post (Should Social Media Take The Weekends Off?), and do think that service-type businesses can get away with this better, but I absolutely believe that any product oriented brand needs to be ONLINE constantly.

What are some things you’ve noticed on social media that has you thinking, “That’s not how it works!”?! Comment below.

– Marji J. Sherman